An investigation being carried out into the loss of propulsion onboard the Viking Sky cruise ship on March 23, 2019 has determined the direct cause of engine failure to be low oil pressure.
According to the Norwegian Maritime Authority (NMA), the vessel’s engines stopped working due to low lubricating oil in the tanks as the vessel sailed towards Hustadvika. The lubricating oil level was within set limits, however, the heavy seas in Hustadvika likely caused movements in the tanks so large that the supply to the lubricating oil pumps stopped. This triggered an alarm indicating a low level of lubrication oil, which in turn caused an automatic shutdown of the engines.
What happened
The Viking Sky, a less than two-year old 47,800 GRT ship was sailing in Hustadvika Bay when four of its engines cut out. The ship started drifting towards the coast and a mayday was sent to the Norwegian authorities. Life boats were not an option for rescue due to the extreme wind and wave conditions encountered. The crew did however manage to restart one of the engines as the ship reached within 100m of the shore, enabling the ship to make its way back to deeper water where the anchor was lowered and the rescue of nearly 500 passengers via helicopter began. The vessel was towed to Molde, Norway.
Criticism to sail
The captain of the Viking Sky has received some criticism for choosing to sail in poor weather conditions. Other ship operators, including Norwegian expedition line Hurtigruten chose to keep its vessels in port, rather than sail into the same conditions as the Viking Sky. However,Viking Sky is longer and significantly wider than the Hurtigruten vessels and at less than two years old has been built to withstand such conditions.
While the decision to sail has been criticised by some, both passengers and authorities have praised the quick-thinking and calm behaviour of the crew onboard the Viking Sky, likely minimising the trauma and injuries experienced by passengers. According to the NMA, “What is temporarily clear is that once the incident occurred, the crew’s competence and effort have been an important factor in the success.”
The NMA has also praised the efforts of the crew members in the follow up and inspection phase. “We also want to point out that we have had good cooperation with them onboard the ship and that they have facilitated a good and constructive review.”
Next steps
Following investigation by the NMA, the ship’s classification society Lloyd’s Register, and MAN Energy Solutions, the supplier of the engines, and the Accident Investigation Board over the last several days, the immediate and direct cause of engine cut out has been attributed to ‘low-oil pressure.’ More information on this will follow.
In the meantime, the Norwegian Maritime Directorate has prepared a general safety report to ensure the supply of lubricating oil to engines and other critical systems under expected weather conditions. The NMA has warned that this should be done in collaboration with the engine supplier and taken in as part of the ship’s risk assessments in the safety management system.
Viking Ocean Cruises commented: “We greatly appreciate the rapid and effective investigations that the Norwegian Maritime Directorate has done, and we understand and recognise their findings. We have inspected the levels of lubricating oil on all our sister ships and we are now reviewing our procedures to ensure that this problem will not recur. We will continue to work with our partners and regulatory authorities to support them in their ongoing investigations. ”
The US and UK have also taken interest in the Viking Sky incident with their accident investigation branches joining the investigation.
A diving survey has revealed that there is no damage to the ship’s hull. The intake for cooling water has also been checked and confirmed in working order with no damage. Continued investigation over the next several days will reveal if and what further damage has been done to the ship.
The NMA is working closely with Viking Line and LR to understand the loss of propulsion further. The Accident Investigation Board’s acting director General Lars Alvestad has informed that the vessel’s owner wishes to move the ship to a yard in Kristiansund to begin repair work. On March 27, it was confirmed that the Viking Sky is to be towed to Kristiansund with the help of a tugboat.
“We are prepared to cooperate with the shipowner and other relevant agencies to find a solution to this”, stated Alvestad.
There will be ongoing work into the safety of other similar vessels. The NMA says it will look at whether or not there are circumstances connected to the incident, technical or operational, that may be of consequence to other vessels. NMA confirms it will be quick to provide information if any such circumstances are disclosed.
Viking Ocean Cruises added: “We welcome the prompt and efficient investigation carried out by the NMA and we fully understand and acknowledge their findings. We have inspected the levels on all our sister ships and are now revising our procedures to ensure that this issue could not be repeated. We will continue to work with our partners and the regulatory bodies in supporting them with the ongoing investigations,”
